The 2009 Clásica de San Sebastián was the 29th edition of the
Clásica de San Sebastián
The Donostia-Donostia Klasikoa — Clásica San Sebastián-San Sebastián (San Sebastián Classic) is a one-day professional men's bicycle road race in northern Spain that has been held every summer since 1981 in San Sebastián. It is the m ...
road cycling race
Road bicycle racing is the cycle sport discipline of road cycling, held primarily on paved roads. Road racing is the most popular professional form of bicycle racing, in terms of numbers of competitors, events and spectators. The two most com ...
. It took place on 1 August 2009, and was the tenth event of the
2009 UCI ProTour
The 2009 UCI ProTour was the fifth series of the UCI ProTour. Two new teams, the American and the Russian , joined the ProTour, effectively taking over the licenses of and . Two existing teams changed title sponsors: from Denmark became , and ...
, and the eighteenth in the
inaugural
In government and politics, inauguration is the process of swearing a person into office and thus making that person the incumbent. Such an inauguration commonly occurs through a formal ceremony or special event, which may also include an inau ...
UCI World Ranking
The UCI men's road racing world rankings are a points system used to rank men's road cycling riders. Points are awarded based on results in UCI sanctioned races, with points varying widely based on the importance and prestige of the race. The ...
series. It began and ended in
San Sebastián
San Sebastián, officially known by the bilingual name Donostia / San Sebastián (, ), is a city and municipality located in the Basque Autonomous Community, Spain. It lies on the coast of the Bay of Biscay, from the France–Spain border ...
, in the
Basque Country,
Spain
Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
. The race covered , mainly to the south and east of the city, and entirely within the province of
Guipúzcoa
Gipuzkoa ( , ; ; ) is a province of Spain and a historical territory of the autonomous community of the Basque Country. Its capital city is Donostia-San Sebastián. Gipuzkoa shares borders with the French department of Pyrénées-Atlantique ...
.
Teams and riders
As the race was under the auspices of the
UCI ProTour
The UCI ProTour was a series of road bicycle racing, road bicycle races in Europe, Australia and Canada organised by the Union Cycliste Internationale, UCI (International Cycling Union). Created by Hein Verbruggen, former president of the UCI, i ...
, all eighteen ProTour teams were invited automatically. An additional wildcard invitation was given to
Contentpolis-Ampo, a Professional Continental team, to form the event's 19-team peloton.
The 19 teams invited to the race are:
Teams consisted of up to eight riders, and 143 riders started the event. The event takes place less than a week after the conclusion of the
2009 Tour de France
The 2009 Tour de France was the 96th edition of the Tour de France, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It started on 4 July in the principality of Monaco with a individual time trial which included a section of the Circuit de Monaco. The race visite ...
, and many of the riders who took part in that event, were scheduled for this race, including all but three of the top fifteen finishers, although a number of the higher profile riders withdrew in the last few days before the event, including the suspended local rider,
Mikel Astarloza.
Route
The route is an anticlockwise loop, heading southwest from San Sebastián, reaching its highest point, and its farthest from the city at the
Alto de Udana
The musical term alto, meaning "high" in Italian (Latin: ''altus''), historically refers to the contrapuntal part higher than the tenor and its associated vocal range. In four-part voice leading alto is the second-highest part, sung in choruses ...
(574 m). It then heads back towards the southern suburbs of the start town, before heading east through the
Jaizkibel
Jaizkibel is a mountain range of the Basque Country located east of Pasaia, north of Lezo and west of Hondarribia, in Spain, with at the highest point (peak Alleru). The range stretches south-west to north-east, where it plunges into the sea ...
mountains to
Hondarribia
Hondarribia (; ; ) is a Spanish town situated on the west shore of the Bidasoa river's estuary, in Gipuzkoa, in the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Autonomous Community.
The border town is situated on a little promontory facing Hend ...
on the French border, and then back to San Sebastián.
Categories
As well as the overall race, there are prizes available for amassing most points at five intermediate sprints around the course, and for gaining points at the top of six mountain passes and hilltops.
General Standings
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:2009 Clasica De San Sebastian
Clásica de San Sebastián
Clasica de San Sebastian
San Sebastian
Clásica de San Sebastián
The Donostia-Donostia Klasikoa — Clásica San Sebastián-San Sebastián (San Sebastián Classic) is a one-day professional men's bicycle road race in northern Spain that has been held every summer since 1981 in San Sebastián. It is the m ...